nightside
by TheLadyMuse
Summary: Nightsiders Hero Agency Known as the best, though new, Nightside was created to protect Underground and Independent Heroes. They are also known for having a cutthroat business team, genius support staff, cunning mission controllers and the highest training standards in the business.
1. The Nightsider's Hero Agency

**The Nightsiders' Hero Agency**

 **Nightside: a term coined by KatHarkness-Katara for DC vigilantes that I thought fit Underground Heroes really well.**

 **The Nightsider's Hero Agency is a bit of a misnomer because although Yagi is involved, it was coined in honor of Aizawa, because he was there for ALL of Class 1-A from the beginning. Although you won't see them, other yearmates were pulled in to make Nightsider's a reality.**

Rolling over, Mineta Minoru huffed a disgusted sigh. He didn't want to get up, but he had to work, which meant getting up in his crappy apartment, out of his lumpy bed and starting the day early. It wasn't fair! He was working as the desk clerk for a lowbrow agency, and all his former classmates were running a high caliber hero agency famous for fielding teams that got the job done quickly and efficiently. Their support department and business managers were known for being cutthroat, cunning and their schoolmates.

(What Mineta didn't know, hadn't been close to knowing, was that Shinsou, Midoriya and a select handful of others had started Nightside to protect the Underground heroes and to play mostly by their own rules. The requirement to be considered part of the Founders was that you respected or were taught by Eraserhead or All Might. But to actually be part of the agency, in the beginning, you had to be willing to give a percentage of your earnings to Pros who weren't making money anymore. Shouta and Toshinori hadn't needed it, but their had been others, especially Eraserhead's Underground contacts, who could use an open medical wing or some cash to pay the bills.)

It was really annoying that he hadn't been able to get in, because Nightside made a lot of money, but they also trained sidekicks well. The brats that interned at his agency always complained about whoever had taken the available slots for Nightside.

(Most of those little shits never realized it wasn't simply respecting your predecessors and comrades that got you into the door. Shinsou and Aizawa had made sure there were ample opportunities for the sidekicks to explore Underground work, especially those with 'villainous' Quirks. Bakugou, Todoroki, Kirishima and Kaminari only took the most dedicated physical heroes, while Ojirou was the official 'Sifu', the hand-to-hand master who put everyone through the wringer eventually. Yaoyorozu kept a careful eye on the rich kid wannabe heroes, guiding them to the right choices while Todoroki especially kept watch on the legacies and Shinsou on the 'villains in waiting'. It was a good system, but unashamedly selective in who they took on, not wanting disrespectful little snots around Aizawa and Yagi.)

Why? Why had he, their classmate until Shinsou stole his spot, been rejected when he applied to Nightside?

(Aizawa Enya, Eraserhead's wife and the performer Thunderheart, had been the deciding test. The gentle former socialite had visited at just the right time to see if Mineta was still his perverse self. Which, no surprise, he hadn't changed. Instead of one of the team or division leaders making the decision, Bakugou had hoisted the rotten grape by the collar and tossed him into the street, the viciously powerful bastard snarling as he launched him into the air.)

Why had freaking Bakugou 'I don't give a shit just get out of my way' Katsuki been the one to toss him out? Why, for that matter, hadn't he insisted on being a team or division leader?

(Bakugou, in the years since enrolling in Yuuei had suffered and changed in ways that Mineta hadn't. He'd watched Izuku and Eijirou try to protect him, had met Enya and seen how overprotective Eraserhead was. Had realized that Aizawa was likeable because he channelled his asshole moments into being productive and was generally neutral if not pleasant. So Katsuki, having realized he fucking loved Izuku and liked and respected Eijirou, had toned himself down. Had backed away to the fringe of the group to keep an eye on the people he cared about without being obvious, having decided Deku was beyond him, now. He'd decided to be the asshole so the others didn't have to.)

Why had his life turned out like this?

(Because Mineta Minoru was a sniveling cluster of rotten grapes who couldn't see that his perversion, his open idiocy was what kept the others from reaching out, from actually liking him.)

Sighing again, stretching, Mineta Minoru got up and got ready for another day of the life he'd brought on himself.

(Not that he'd ever actually admit it.)

 **Enya: an indulgence in my headcanon that if Aizawa isn't married to Mic (which I doubt) he's probably got a sweet, well groomed, polite socialite who doesn't care what her family thinks of her scruffy Hero. There is a point to Enya, and Enya will show up in at least one work outside of Nightside. For visual people, she has mid-back length red-black hair, can comfortably rest her cheek on Aizawa's shoulder, is gorgeous but doesn't care about that. Sweet, like I said, her maiden name is Akatsuki. When she's not performing (she has two Quirks, like Todoroki but not quite) she's teaching Quirk control at the Akatsuki Academy for Performing Arts, which is owned by her father.**


	2. If all we wanted was the night, we'd dan

**If all we wanted was the night, we'd dance till dawn**

 **Izuku and Katsuki. Katsuki and Izuku. It took more than tears and fairy dust to do it, but they made it to them.**

Bolting awake when he heard a faint noise, Izuku calmed his breathing when he realized Kacchan had just wheezed in his sleep. Trying not to be too loud, Izuku regulated his own breathing, desperately batting away the fear that had ignited when he heard the wheeze.

(Years ago, Katsuki had gotten trapped in a collapse after sending Izuku out with a rescued victim. It had been half an hour before they found him, struggling to breath under a pile of rubble. So sure he was dying, Katsuki had called Izuku over, whispered a confession and closed his eyes for what he thought was the final time. Izuku didn't remember- didn't want to remember- because he'd been hysterical, but Urakaka and a healing hero had saved Kacchan. Kacchan had awoken in the hospital nearly a day later, back when Nightside hadn't had the resources to have their own medics. To this day, he still wheezed once in a while, especially when he was on his back for too long or he dreamed of that day.)

With a trembling hand, Izuku rolled Katsuki onto his side, breathing out when his husband's breathing deepened. Slotting himself against Kacchan's back, Izuku buried his nose in blond strands, limbs winding around a broad body as he mind distracted itself with memories.

(Kacchan waking up in the hospital, Izuku and Eijirou clutching his hands as Todoroki stood guard at the door, swapping with Iida as the doctor came in. Once the doctor said that Kacchan would be okay with rest, Momo came in, switching the hospital blanket with a soft, bloody orange coverlet that didn't obscure the bandages over Bakugou's ribs. Other members of Nightside came by, subdued by Katsuki's injury and a concerned Aizawa's sharp looks.)

Moving a little, Bakugou murmured

"Mmm, 'Zuku?" Sliding a hand over his chest, Izuku shifted so his other arm was beneath his head and whispered

"You wheezed. Woke me up." Dropping a kiss on his temple, Izuku listened to the mumbled apology even as he nuzzled Katsuki back to sleep.

(Kacchan's recovery had been hard. Convincing him that Izuku understood his confession, that he accepted it, was only part of the battle. Inko had been leery, Katsuki had refused to believe that an 'us' could, should happen, and the others had been unsure. A temporary, inter-agency trade had highlighted Izuku's differences without Katsuki being around, and another one a few months later had done the opposite, which had led to Eijirou encouraging them. That had been the only opening Izuku needed to convince Katsuki to be happy.)

They'd come a long way from starting Nightside. It had not ever been easy but had most definitely been worth doing.

(Aizawa-sensei's fortieth birthday party, celebrated at Nightside HQ, had been proof of how worth it everything had been. Eraserhead had been given a party that suited his tastes, his wife in the circle of his arm and his former students, for all they still called him Sensei, had approached the Aizawa pair one or two at time to speak with him quietly as Yagi looked on, Mic and Midnight and a few others smiling gently at the knocked-off-balance expression Shouta had worn every year. Everyone who mattered had been there and happy and as okay as it would get.)

Squeezing Kacchan to his chest, Izuku didn't realize when his memories drifted into dreams.

(Todoroki and Momo getting married and bringing Shouto's mother home to their house in the Nightside neighbourhood, where Endeavour was definitely not permitted. Kirishima and Mina setting up shop in a house across the street from the Todoroki family, inviting Shouto's mother to act as grandmother to their adopted twin girls. Shinsou and his Erika, settling into a peaceful apartment half an hour away from headquarters. Aizawa, All Might and Mic settling into a big house full of Enya's laughter and the voices of former, off duty students come to make sure they're all comfortable. Inko, his mother, uncertainly but gratefully settled in as dorm mother for the interns and general supervisor for the agency.)

 **Yes, I glossed over, like everything. That is kind of my specialty, because even when I wrote 'With My Words, I Vow You and I', 'Remnants of an Unknown Age' and 'How 'bout screw you, canon?' I cannot get the precision for this shit. The closest I came to doing that was the one of my Naruto fics. So I'll roll with my strengths and edge out of my comfort zone.**


	3. no longer nightside

**no longer nightside**

 **Aizawa, Enya and Erika all reflect on what has been**

 **(Shinsou makes a wordless cameo and will get his due. Later.)**

Shouta slouched into the basement suite he shared with his wife, Enya. Normally, they'd join Toshinori and Hizashi upstairs or something, but he'd been shooed out of work earlier than usual, Shinsou of all people chiding him to 'go home to your wife and get her to give you your eyedrops'. Enya was dozing on their bed when he came in, and Shouta took a minute to admire her. They'd had more than a few challenges, but… she was worth it.

(Waking in the hospital at nineteen, Enya's head bowed over the hand she held between her own, two smaller ones had been a shock. They'd known each other for twelve years, sure, but his father had guarded hers, and after Aizawa Shinya had died, they hadn't had much contact. Akatsuki Eisaku hadn't permitted it. And yeah, Shouta knew it was better if he didn't have much to do with Enya, now or ever, but his heart eased, seeing her. It did unsettle him, though, when her lashes rose and she reached one hand up to tuck a lock of hair behind her ear. Red eyes met his, filling with tears as their owner's chin trembled before she whispered

"Shouta.")

Pulling off his capture weapon, Shouta chewed his lip as he considered waking Enya. She'd prefer he let her help, but he preferred she got some sleep, she slept as little as he did, most of the time.

(He remembered being twenty-five, just married to her, pushing sleep off for a few hours to trap her beneath his body, his hair falling around her face as she peppered his with kisses, giggling as her arms wound around his neck.

He also remembered coming home at thirty, grumbling about his freaking kids only for her to kiss his nose and straddle his lap to force him to sit still for his eyedrops.

Mostly he remembered that whenever he came home, she was happy to see him, and when he woke up in the hospital, she was there, upset he'd been injured but not loving him any less.

More importantly, he knew she'd never be a 'casualty of the job')

Running a hand through his hair, Shouta climbed in next to Enya and mumbled as he curled an arm around her waist

"I'm home."

Aizawa Enya hasn't always been an Aizawa.

(At fourteen, she'd been arguing with her father to let her go see Shouta, begging and pleading for him to let her follow her heart. He'd thought seeing Shouta with his body broken would scare her off.

He'd been wrong. It had steeled her resolve to be Shouta's support. She'd been young but known what she wanted, hated that her wants would hurt Shouta if anyone knew.

Until she was twenty, her only visits with Shouta had been those quick coffee dates and hospital visits fitting of an old, younger friend. She'd only been able to hold on so long because he'd mumbled agreement when she proposed that, when it was safe, they be them.

Her family had been furious that she eloped behind their backs, her father enraged that she dare believe a hero was worthy of an Akatsuki, but she hadn't given a damn. She'd spent those six, torturous years preparing every contingency, heart breaking every time Shouta landed in hospital. Fewer than they could have been, true, but she hadn't wanted him hurt.

Except being a hero was Shouta's dream, and after…

After miscarrying Shinya, the baby that would have been their son, named for Shouta's father, Enya couldn't ask Shouta to stop living his dream. It had crushed them both, losing that chance at a family, and Enya had been afraid the children he taught would hurt Shouta in some way, but they'd only driven him to be better.

They were living their dreams and it would have all been okay, not reconciling, until her niece, Erika, fell in love with Shouta's favourite student. Her brother was still trying to pick up the pieces of that particular fight.)

A warm body with a familiar scent slipped into bed and held her close, it's owner mumbling that he was home. Curling around Shouta, Enya finally allowed herself to sink into a true, deep sleep.

Shinsou Erika stretched her fingers, before dancing them over the keys, not in the familiar noctourne she played for Hitoshi, but in the aria she rather thought represented her aunt. When Hitoshi came out of the bedroom after his nap, picking up the guitar on the stand, she bridged into the duet that represented them. Erika and Hitoshi, Riptide and Willbender, the successors of Thunderheart and Eraserhead.

(She knew what had happened with her Aunt Enya. She'd cast aside the family, the Akatsuki name, to elope with a scruffy no-name hero who happened to be the son of her grandfather's late bodyguard. Grandfather Eisaku had always grown sour when her name was mentioned, Grandma Shizuya ready to cry, and her parents were tense.

Erika had gone to UA in the hopes that she would land in her uncle's class. Eisaku had wanted what intel she could get on her aunt, but it wasn't to be. She'd ended up in General Studies with Hitoshi, and a year and a half later her mother had knocked sobbing on her aunt's door, begging to know what would stop them from being together.

They hadn't known that then. Not until they had the choice to marry or not without her family interfering, when Enya and Shouta had revealed that not only had Eisaku and Erika's father, Eisuke, tried to split them up, they'd tried bribing Shouta and blackmailing Enya with her mother's sorrow. Erika had seethed at what her family had tried to do to her aunt, for no more reason than that Uncle Shouta didn't fit in the box they'd created for Aunt Enya's husband.)

The song came to a close. Hitoshi kissed her good bye and she drew in a breath before calling her aunt, wishing she had half the other woman's composure.

 **Akatsuki family: Yeah, sorry, the Akatsuki family don't really care that Shouta and Hitoshi are good guys who are actually both lovable and loved, and I will probably get into Erika's mother visiting Enya at some point. Eill there be an Akatsuki-Aizawa/Shinsou reconciliation? If enough people are interested, I'd write it, but honestly, you'll see bits and pieces of that particular mess dotting whatever BnHA fics that Enya is in.**


	4. From dusk, I rise

**From dusk, I rise**

 **Toshinori helps his bra- students, students, even though they'll protest, in the early years of running Nightsiders.**

Sharp eyes ran critically over the walls of Nightsider's break room. Unlike the other rooms at the Nightsider's Hero Agency, this one needed some love. The children had dismissed it as a non-priority, but Toshinori knew well how depressing it was to come back to a grungy place.

He had to be careful, though. Nightsider's had a very well-balanced colour scheme. Team Dynamic tended to blues, greens and blood orange, Team Rescue to white, red, and deep green, while Team Nightside preferred black, grey and purple.

A coat of cream paint would warm up the dingy white walls. Lips twisting, Toshinori considered the furniture. New models of the existing sofa, chairs, and appliances would be fine. New countertops, carpets and refinishing the huge dining table would be a good idea. If he could coordinate crews, he could get it done the next time Rescue was called out. Dynamic usually ran support for that and Nightside rarely used the break room when the others were away. With their first batch of interns coming in a few months, something had to be done.

Although Enya-san noticed (how could she not?) she just smiled and redirected the children so Toshinori could get everything done.

At first, he hears the children scold him for spending so much money on them, but they grudgingly thank him when they make a good impression on their interns.

The grumbled thanks and tetchy-but-pleased smiles are enough. He's had years enough to grow into his students expectation that they would take care of him and his tasks, that it doesn't hurt so much anymore to not be who he was.


	5. Witching Hour

**Shinsou Hitoshi, age twenty, writes to his fourteen year old self**

 _To myself, at age fourteen_

 _If you'd told me, years ago, that I'd be respected as an Underground Hero, I'd have nodded. But I would have laughed if you told me something like Nightsider's would happen. It's too fantastical, even having lived it. And Erika? Forget it._

 _The weirdest part about Nightsider's? Todoroki, Iida, Shikigari, Hatsume and I may be the captains and team leaders, Senpai our director, but it was Bakugou who suggested it. He was pissed that Sensei took the fall to buy time to find him. He said he'd open his own agency, designed to protect Sensei and others like him if it was what it took._

 _Bakugou might have said it in a fit of rage when he figured out what kind of backlash fell on Sensei, but he pulled his weight when the others decided to make it a reality._

 _Somehow, that bully-brat grew up to be a man who pulls ugly ass work weeks, teaches little bullies why bullying is bad and has time for a successful relationship._

 _I'm not jealous. Erika and I are better than ever. It's just amazing that someone could turn around so much._

 _Shinsou Hitoshi_

 _Nightside Division Captain_

 **The title is a reference to when he wrote the letter. This could be taken a step further, I suppose. But should I?**


	6. If only all dreams came true

**Ochako, on dreams and reality.**

Life is not fair. Ochako has known this, down to her bones, for years. Since realizing Izuku would not, could not, love her.

How could he after he and his childhood mended fences?

After that, it was 'Kacchan, Kacchan' and Squad dates between the Deku and Baku squads, and watching them kiss. Eagerly, slowly, deeply, hello, goodbye and everything in between.

Then there was the training camp in Senior year, where Sensei caught them fucking and just muttered advice before retreating to his sleeping bag. Later, he'd claimed their potential was too obvious to expel them for fucking.

The truth had come out when they met his wife. Everyone had seen how he eye-fucked her despite being married for literal years.

Coming to Nightsider's had made it easier, too. She had always amired Izuku, of course, but now she had a front row seat to Katsuki.

His insecurities, work ethic and determination could shatter the world, if he hadn't decided to save it instead.

Once in a while, she still wondered 'what if it had been me?'. That never lasts long. Izuku (Deku) is so happy alongside Ground Zero, how could she be otherwise?


	7. stars shine in your eyes

**Todoroki Shinkou reflects on how her life has grown since Shouto visited her after his first UA sports festival.**

Sometimes, she expects to wake up back in the hospital.

But then she wakes up in the pretty, minimalist room Momo-chan had decorated for her in her home with Shouto. Shinkou knows she could decorate it however she wished, that her son and daughter-in-law would gladly help her.

However, Shinkou likes this room as it is. It's pretty, with warm yellow walls, white, practical bed linens that are so soft to the touch. Momo-chan cleans the room once a week, unless Shinkou does so herself. Strangely, it's not as intrusive as the nurses, in the hospital. Momo-chan just makes sure her dirty laundry is done and that the room is dusted. Shouto brings both her and Momo-chan flowers every once in a while, smiling with an ease that tightens Shinkou's chest.

When she was shown this room, Shinkou had to fight tears. It was comfortable, homey without trying, and had framed pictures of her children standing on the desk. Better, letters from each of her children had been placed on the desktop. Each had detailed events that she'd missed in her children's lives, included requests for them to visit. Shinkou had had to dab at her eyes as she finished them.

The visits had started awkwardly. Shouto and Momo-chan had been present every time, and when they couldn't Shouto had been very strict about others being around when his brothers and sister were around. It had been strange, that her son and his wife were so overprotective, but nice. Still, Aizawa-san and Shinsou-san's wives had interceded and Shouto and Momo-chan had relented, so her relationships with her children were better than ever.

It's hard, sometimes. Unlike Shinkou, who hasn't had time to be a parent, Inko-san, Aizawa-san, Toshinori-san, Hizashi-san and Enya-san have all been adopted as something like parents by Shouto's entire year group. And Shinkou knows, really, that it isn't her fault that she wasn't around for her children, but the easy acceptance of the Nightside crew had helped. Sometimes, it was harder than usual not to be bitter. That someone else had had to be Shouto's parent and mentor was hard to swallow, sometimes, but the way these people cared made it easier. Most of the time.

The best part of being an unofficial Nightsider was that she got to play the part of grandmother to Kirishima-kun and Mina-chans' twin girls, who adore their parents but find it wonderful to have a third grandmother who dotes on them. Eijirou-kun and Mina-chan seem grateful, to have someone in the neighbourhood who will watch the kids at the house when they're both working. And Momo-chan always thanks her when she does some of the housework, but Shouto always frowns and tries to pamper her.

Not perfect, but wonderful nonetheless.


	8. We'll storm the beaches before morning

**Nightsiders don't play games. When you try to screw with their people, you invite the Demons' Head into your home, where they'll eat your heart out and you'll be left numb and terrified.**

Nightsider's Hero Agency does not play games. They don't perpetuate feuds, or let vendettas get in the way of finishing their mission. Which is sometimes convoluted but boils down to: Answer the call. Always.

Dynamic, Nightside, Rescue, Marketing, Support... they all focus on doing their job, to protect the country and each other.

A few years after Nightsider's became established, the rather impetuous and impulsive Mt. Lady called on several Team Dynamic members to crush her rival, assuming their reputation of not pulling punches in a fight meant that they would. The furious members ended the fight quickly, subduing everyone including Mt. Lady while an enraged Bakugou phoned the deputy director.

Kirishima, Todoroki and Midoriya, their sidekicks ranged around them, uncertain, were the only ones to stand through the storm of Katsuki's rage as he spoke with the deputy director, grins creeping up their faces when Bakugou hung up and announced to Mt. Lady

"I hope your affairs are in order. The director is furious enough to come personally and sort out this mess." Puzzled, Mt. Lady wondered about the sadistic smiles her industry kouhai were sporting. And then she remembered the rumours about Nightside. Eraserhead and All Might were involved, of course, but they also had an entire division devoted to Underground intelligence. Who knew that kind of blackmail they might have?

Her worries abated when Lemillion and Sun Eater approached her. If Lemillion was the director...

That line of thought was cut off by Amajiki storming up to her and asking coolly

"What did you hope to accomplish by having my kouhai brawl for you?" All the heroes who knew the reticent Sun Eater stared, while his kouhai, deputy and interns watched in fascination. Sure, Amajiki Tamaki was a shy, non-confrontational guy. But he had always been a tactical genius, and having an entire organization to care for had required him to step up or resign. With Mirio and Eijirou's support, he'd quickly come to rule the Nightsiders. Katsuki had thrown his support behind the older male by (perhaps purposely) losing a strategy contest. As was, now, his assorted captains and team leaders were extremely loyal, and Tamaki repaid that loyalty every day with the best strategies.

So for those who knew how seriously Tamaki took his duty to Nightsider's, this was nothing new, just a public extension of Tamaki. But those who didn't know him, the news people milling around? They gobbled it up with an scared fascination.

And Mt. Lady learned to fear the times that the Nightside crew called in the Director, as she'd had his rage directed at her once, and that was more than enough.


	9. Into the darkness

**It's your first day of your internship with the Nightsider's Hero Agency, and you'll get to meet fresh faces and old heroes alike when Kirishima Eijirou, the Red Riot, gives you a tour. How exciting!**

When you received the offer to intern at the Nightsider's Hero Agency, you and your friends were shocked. Rarely do they choose just anyone, and you were the only one in your batch to receive an offer. Your Quirk could be- and has- been perceived as villainous. But Sensei had said it wasn't a trick, and you were to arrive in uniform, and you would be greeted by Red Riot. Several classmates and many upperclassmen had been jealous, because Nightsider's hated nepotism, hated flashy people with no grit, or, at least, that was the way Todoroki Shouto, the Dynamic captain, Shikigari Hirohito, the Marketing team leader, (and by default, the spokesmen of the group since Director Sun Eater hates crowds) come off. Bakugou Katsuki, Ground Zero, is the most outspoken Nightsider, and he hates unmotivated young heroes with the same passion as his sensei, Eraserhead. Which reminds you- since Aizawa Shouta retired to advise his former students, and Yagi Toshinori had done the same- you'll be able to meet Eraserhead and Willbender, and maybe Sun Eater, the heroes you've looked up to for years.

Sure, it's obvious why you would admire Willbender and Eraserhead. They took 'Villain' Quirks and became nightstalking legends, of course you admire them. But you admire Sun Eater just as much, if not more. The notoriously anxious, somewhat prickly Hero had become the director of a titanic agency in spite of his troubles, and was reportedly adored by his staff for his dedication and loyalty and that's exactly what you want. To be strong, and loyal, and have your goodness seen and hopefully acknowledged.

You aren't the only one to get off on the Nightside stop. There's a third year with a Quirk kind of like Eraserheads', a pair of second years geared for rescue, and another third year from the other class with a combat Quirk. You are, however, the only one to arrive this way, and it puzzles you. Until Red Riot calmly calls you over, and you hurry, straightening your uniform as you stop in front of him. He laughs warmly, claps a hand on your shoulder and says kindly

"The others know how to get here and came early, because we usually invite our interns back." He guides you through the streets of the city, chattering animatedly about the dorm you'll be living in. Great. Dorm to dorm, even if Kirishima-san makes it sound comfortable. He lets you drop off your stuff before explaining that you're expected to show up to work in your uniform, and are only permitted to break that expectation for emergencies.

Kirishima-san leads you through the Nightsider's lobby, and you notice that despite being furnished well and comfortably, this building is utilitarian to the core, no warm shade covers up that these walls and floors were made to be quickly cleaned or rebuilt. But the mural Kirishima-san stops in front of halts all thought. It's indoor, protected from the elements, but stretches along an entire hallway, going from dawn to noon to dusk, familiar faces peering at you as you stumble behind Red Riot. All Might, Deku, Ground Zero, Froppy, Earphone Jack, Eraserhead, Willbender, all here and so many more. And then Red Riot steers you into a smallish room empty of everything but photos on the wall. Wedding photos in black and white, children's school photos and formally posed older people- parents?- and the plaque on the door (Hall of Hope) makes so much more sense. This is where all the photos run together, making it confusing to guess who to target if you stumbled on it.

Calmly, patiently, Red Riot takes you through the mostly empty facility, always kind when he introduces you to the clerks, Marketing and Support people before he takes you to the breakroom and lets you watch it fill up with your heroes. All these Pros are known for integrity, excellence, drive, sacrifice, and it is soul-shaking to watch them interact casually, despite the obvious respect paid to their former teachers. The Bakusquad calls Kirishima-san over, and the third year with the Erasure Quirk comes and makes low conversation with you, which is a relief as the other squads trickle in, even the clerks, Support and Marketing.

Last to arrive is Sun Eater, Lemillion at his elbow. He takes his seat as you hold your breath, and Takao-san (who introduced themself before mentioning their Hero name is Amnesia) chuckles at your awed expression.

For Nightsider's, it is business as usual, Director Sun Eater asking for urgent news, and when there is none, he asks the clerks for their weekly report. And then he checks in, calmly, slowly, with Support and Marketing and Nightside and Rescue and Dynamic. You lap up all of it, utterly fascinated at the glimpse into the inner workings of such a successful agency. Finally, the meeting winds down, and the other interns reintroduce themselves, and despite wanting to curse, you resolve that if Amajiki-san can be a successful director, you can introduce yourself without too much stumbling.

When it is your turn, you give the introduction you'd practiced, pulling in a nervous breath before blurting

"I've looked up to Eraserhead and Willbender for a while, because of my Q-Quirk, b-but I've always felt like, if-if Sun Eater c-c-can be a Hero with a-an-anxiety, then I could too, m-maybe." Blushing, you sink back into your seat, leaning into Takao-sempai when they put an arm around you as everyone applauds what, for you, is a very bold speech. But you don't feel awful. The rescue duo had said they looked up to Froppy and Sirius, and the combatant third year had teased Deku and Ground Zero by wishing they had such a strong battlefield partner.

Later, when the staff meeting has dispersed and everyone is heading for training or patrol, Director Sun Eater approaches you. Takao-sempai has remained protectively close, having decided to mentor you, but they back off when the Director quietly tells them that Captain Shinsou has a new workout regimen for them. Takao-sempai leaves without grumbling, and the Director turns dark, clear eyes on you. He studies you for a long, awful moment, before speaking.

"Thank you." His quiet words stun you, but he continues softly, clearly

"I never knew that I inspired people in that way. Mirio-kun is always telling me I'm a better person, better hero than I believe, but I think... I can begin to believe him." You nod, and then clear your throat and ask hesitantly

"Why... Why did everyone clap?" the Director closes his eyes before opening them, answering, still quiet

"Mirio-kun has never permitted people to... Make fun of my shortcomings, and Eijirou-kun and Katsuki-kun both did some research, though for different reasons, and they just... told everyone what they found. They... they've all adapted to my... problems." He sounds uncertain, unsure, but you can see the people who have lingered in the room, watching as the Director converses with you, and suddenly, you're sure, that if you tried to intimidate the Director, tried to be rude or mean, his people would jump on you.

Envy settles in your gut. You have friends, sure, but not- not like this, where your anxiety is worked around and you're cocooned in friendly, caring people all day, who don't let your anxieties drown or stifle you. Somewhat numbly, you bid the Director good day, see Lemillion race over the moment you step away, murmuring to the Director before leading him away.

Still numb, you sit through the Nightside routine, get told what your duties are and set extra studies that you'd never see in your Hero Course, all focused on the aim of making you a solid Underground Hero. Tokoyami-san demonstrates the use of his Dark Shadow, Jirou-san demonstrates the way she fights with her earlobe extensions, and Ashido-san makes you run an obstacle course over a pit of her acid. Takao-san shows you some hand to hand maneuvers taught to him by Ojirou-sifu, who is away this week, with a fellow Nightside division member, his wife Tooru.

The next day, you get pulled over into the Dynamic division, where Kirishima-san introduces you properly to Captain Todoroki, Midoriya-san and Bakugou-san, before he throws you at Kaminari-san and laughs loudly when you win a quick fight. Once again, you're set extra reading and exercises, and the others haul you to lunch, just as had happened the day before.

On the third day, Asui-san drags you through Rescue, Support and Marketing, and you marvel at all the extra training that goes into being a Nightsider. First Aid, lifts and carries, and how to ride Iida-san's back. Strangely, this is actually a Thing, apparently because you never know when Ingenium will have to haul you to safety and if you know how to situate yourself so he can go faster... It just might save your life. Uraraka-san lets you have some fun with floating before she laughingly sets you down.

After that, you're pulling double patrol shifts, and all you do until halfway through the last day is eat, sleep, and patrol. Then you're called to the Director's office for your assessment. You're surprised to find that instead of one of the Director's assistants reading it off, you're invited inside for tea, and you almost choke when you realize Lemillion isn't here, no, but the Director, Eraserhead and Willbender are. You go through the meeting in a daze, stuttering when Director Sun Eater (who asked you to call him Amajiki-san) offers you a place for your successive internships, to be mentored by Takao and groomed for Underground work by the Nightside division. You eagerly accept, blushing when Aizawa-san (Shinsou-san told you to call him Aizawa-sensei) knowingly slides a piece of paper across the table, and it bears semi-personal notes from each of the men, including their autographs.

You'll come back to Nightside, you're sure of it. Especially after you overhear Red Riot as you leave to pack, ecstatic that he got 'Tetsutetsu' to switch agencies, and Takao-sempai, walking beside you, mutters the name of a Pro whose Quirk has something to do with steel, a man your younger brother idolizes for the similarity in their Quirks.


End file.
